From the Research Desk

Researchers from the Netherlands and Norway published an observational study in the British Medical Journal (BMJ) explaining the morphology behind Rudolph’s famous red nose. They hypothesized that the extreme redness was caused by “the presence of a highly dense and rich nasal microcirculation”. In other words, Rudolph’s nose has an abundant supply of red blood cells flowing through a vast number of tiny blood vessels. Results of the study show that the hypothesis was proven. After a careful comparison with five human subjects, the researchers determined that while similar, the vascular network in a reindeer’s nose is 25% denser than that in a human.

Also, perhaps even more interestingly, the tiny blood vessels in the reindeer’s nose do not contain red blood cells during diastole (the time between heart beats); with systole (heart beat), an excess of blood is forced through the vessels. The figure below shows the infrared image of a reindeer’s head after a treadmill test. Notice the presence of a red nose.

The reindeer nasal anatomy and physiology observed in this study testifies to the eminent suitability of Rudolph to lead Santa’s sleigh.

Article: Ince, C., van Kuijen, A. M., Milstein, D. M., Yuruk, K., Folkow, L. P., Fokkens, W. J., & Blix, A. S. (2012). Why rudolph’s nose is red: Observational study. BMJ (Clinical Research Ed.), 345, e8311. doi:10.1136/bmj.e8311 [doi]

Have a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!

Jill Turner, Librarian Consultant

Graphics:

Rudolph the Rednosed Reindeer: GuitarHero188Rock

Infrared image of reindeer: Blix, As. Arctic Animals. Tapir Academic Press, 2005.

The pressure is on!  We’re in the midst of finals, when all your class readings, lecture notes, practice problems and studying will be distilled into a one to two-hour exam.  Test anxiety can significantly affect your performance on exams, so here are six study tips to help  you feel prepared and relaxed for your finals.

1. Find an ideal study space:  You’ll want a space with all of the supplies you’ll need (you don’t want to spend time searching for index cards, a ruler, or whatever else you may need) and without distractions (your dorm room may not be the best choice if friends tend to drop in).

 

2. Prioritize: Start with your most important tasks while you’re still fresh and can focus your attention.

 

3. When reading, start at the end: Unless you’re reading a mystery or other fiction, start with the summary or conclusion and any study questions at the end of each chapter. This way you’ll know what important points you should focus on as you read.  You should also scan the chapter headings and bold-faced terms for the same reason.

 

4. Think of possible exam questions: When you’re reviewing readings or lecture notes, try to formulate possible exam questions for each major point or idea.  This active engagement will help you remember the information when you’re asked a similar question during an exam.

 

5. Eat right, exercise, and get enough sleep: It may seem impossible when you have so much to do, but exercise helps reduce stress and depression, getting enough sleep will help you concentrate, and avoiding too much sugar or caffeine will help keep you from crashing after a brief burst of energy.

 

6. Turn off your cell phone!  This may be the hardest but most important study habit, but it’s hard to study when you’re texting.  If you’re using a computer, you may even want to turn off your wi-fi or internet connection so that you’re not tempted to watch the latest cat video.

Jill Spreitzer, Librarian Consultant

You’ve done all the research, you’ve read all the articles.  Now you can begin writing your paper.  But wait, first you must figure out how to format your paper in the MLA or APA style.  OWL at Purdue provides  guidelines but wouldn’t it be nice if there was a template where you could just type in your paper?

Well there is! And here’s how you do it:

First open MS Word and click NEW.

Type either MLA or APA and click the magnifying glass.  Then click the template needed:

For example, this template appears for APA:

Now, just start typing your paper using the guidelines provided by the template.  It’s as easy as that!

Sue Homant

Librarian Consultant

It’s grueling, tedious and time-consuming. I’m referring to typing research papers and getting the in-text citations right and then typing the bibliography at the end with all that confusing formatting. Well, not anymore. UDM Libraries has a tool that makes the formatting of your citations oh so easy and its called RefWorks. This week, Thursday, October 23, Librarian Sue Homant will be offering a drop-in workshop on RefWorks here in the library from 12:45-2:00. RefWorks can be a powerful tool when you are doing a research paper. Here is just a taste of what RefWorks can do.

Using Refworks begins with signing up for a new account. Go to the library portal page research.udmercy.edu. Click on the third tab, Articles, Journals + Databases. Under Find databases by title, you will see the alphabet listed. Select the letter R. RefWorks is second on the list. Click into it and click .

As you do your research and find articles in the library databases, use the export feature found in most databases to load the citations into your RefWorks account. It is also possible to attach the articles to the citations in RefWorks When you have completed your research, make sure all the citations of the articles you will be using in your paper have been loaded into RefWorks. When you are ready to begin typing your paper, go into your RefWorks account, click on Tools  and download Write-N-Cite 4.  Upon successful completion of the download, you should see this at the top of the screen in Microsoft Word.

Click on RefWorks then click on Log In and enter your RefWorks account and password. You will also enter UDM’s Group Code, which can be obtained from the Research and Information Desk.

Once you have logged in, set your style choice (MLA, APA, etc.) 

While typing your paper, click on the Insert Citation icon   and select a citation each time you want to cite a source within the text of the paper . Continue typing and entering the citations as you go by clicking on the Insert Citation icon. RefWorks will put the citation in the text of the paper in the format style you selected.

When you have finished typing your paper and have entered all the citations within the body of the paper you will be ready for RefWorks to create your bibliography page. Place your cursor where you want the bibliography to begin. Click on Bibliography Options. Then click Insert Bibliography.  Your bibliography will be created in the format style you selected. What would take you hours to do RefWorks does instantly!

Drop by Thursday and learn how to make citing fast and easy.

Julia Eisenstein, Librarian

Did you know that Huckleberry Finn, Where the Wild Things Are, Captain Underpants and The Call of the Wild have all been banned or challenged at some point in schools and/or libraries?  It’s not an old or isolated problem, hundreds of books are challenged throughout the U.S. every year.  Every year, Banned Books Week celebrates the freedom of all Americans to read all types of materials, regardless of whether or not the materials include controversial or unpopular viewpoints or topics.

This year, Banned Books Week will focus on banned comics and graphic novels.  Comics and graphic novels are often targeted for removal from libraries because of the mistaken belief that all comics are for children or that they do not have serious literary or artistic value.  However, several graphic novels have won critical praise and won literary awards, and play an important role in libraries, helping develop literacy skills in ESL learners, reluctant readers, and those with learning disorders.  Read more about the history of comics banning as well as relevant case law at the Comic Book Legal Defense Fund website.

Jill Spreitzer, Librarian